Adding Tobasco to spice up the new year

Happy New Year and welcome back. Hopefully your break was excellent and you took that time to shatter some of those great resolutions pledged while drinking champagne.

p. Or maybe went on another terrible blind date set up by your Aunt Linda, fell back in love with that crush back home who is so wrong for you or somehow ended up on the couch of that almost-legal kid again.

p. As some of you may have noticed, the ’Burg decided to greet us in its own way: with the icy slap of actual winter. But don’t despair; there is more than one way to warm up in the drafty dorms.

Some of these winter activities can be fun alone, but most are best enjoyed with a friend — or a group of friends if that’s your thing. Any one of them should be able to take the chills out of your bones and fog up the windows.

p. Speaking of steamy things to do, showering with a partner never gets old. Hopefully, the showers in your building give you enough hot water to get two people hot and wet, so then you can have some private time in your winter water wonderland. If you’re lucky enough to live in a dorm or apartment with a tub, this could become your favorite getaway. Warm each other up with your hands while the tub fills and then take the action into the world of bubbles. Remember to have protection handy just in case you end up turning up the temperature even more. No one wants to leave the warmth of a bath to brave the cold tile and retrieve a condom from the nightstand.

p. If you’re stuck with scrubbing each other down in a shower, don’t forget that the winter is the worst time for injuries. It may seem hilarious now, and I’m sure it might make forr a funny story later on, but slipping out of the shower during sex will probably hurt more than your pride. It’s also hard to get some lovin’ with a big cast on your foot.

p. Because it’s the first couple days of classes, there’s not too much in the way of work for most of us. I’m not suggesting to neglect your work to spend all day indulging your sexual desires, but why punish yourself by going to Swem for five hours? The whole time in class you’re dreaming of those warm blankets on your bed anyway, so why not hop back in for the afternoon? You can have a little party by yourself to heat up while your roommate’s out, or bring someone with you to snuggle. There’s nothing like an undercover cuddle on a blustery day, and you could turn it into a movie in bed. The best part is that you can always choose to ignore the action on the screen and start some of your own.

p. All you need for the next activity is a deck of cards. Strip poker is a classic, and when played to the extreme it can end very well for both players. If poker isn’t quite your style, there are plenty of other games, which can be updated for those with an exhibitionist streak. Most dorms have a duty office in the basement, or else there is that one guy in every hall who will loan out his Jenga set. Simply play the game normally, but place little bets along the way. “If I win this game of tic-tac-toe you’ve got to hand over those boxers” or “Bet you your bra that I can beat ‘Pscyhobilly Freakout’ on hard next time.” Stripping is always a great idea, and you’d be surprised how hot you can get by taking your clothes off.

p. Cooking is a favorite way to warm up from the inside out. Instead of using traditional hot chocolate, why not try cranking up the heat a bit higher. Add some cayenne or Tabasco sauce to a meal and feel the warmth fire up your mouth and get the blood pumping elsewhere.

p. Chili peppers may be a bit hot for some, but they are great to increase your body temperature just enough that you begin to sweat slightly and increase your blood flow. Underarm sweat in men contains androstadienone, a sex pheromone that supposedly acts upon members of the opposite sex to increase attraction. With the color rushing to your faces and that glisten of sweat, it’s easy to start imagining each other being sweaty and naked together. I only ask that you put away the food before it comes to that; the ants are inside looking for warm places, too.